Excerpt & Giveaway: Sunkissed by Carys Jones

Dawn Summers is dying. It’s 1853 and as the seventeen year old continues to fade away she has visions of the father she never knew, urging her to fight for her life.

In the small village of Fandova the only medical care is in the form of the mysterious Dr. Moralus who has a known penchant for bloodletting. Thomas, Dawn's fiancé, is warned against inviting his intervention, but feels he has no choice, he pleads with the doctor to save Dawn’s life…whatever it takes.

Whatever it ‘takes’ has some consequences neither of them expected. Now, it’s a hunt to the death, with both Dawn and Thomas determined to win.

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Excerpt

In the warm glow of the fire he kept one ear tilted to the now open window, listening for any sound which might hail Dawn’s return, but the night remained silent and still. As the hours passed his frustration grew; like dark ivy coiling within his body, tightening its grip on his organs until he could no longer still idly by merely waiting.The fire was now almost burnt out; only the occasional flame danced upon the now smoking embers. Thomas paced over to the window and looked out on Fandova. The dark of the night had lifted, just slightly, to a shade of grey indicating the sun would soon be rising to welcome in a new day.He felt a mixture of anger and panic engulf him. If Dawn was out in the sunlight she could be badly hurt, but then she had gone against his wishes and left so perhaps she deserved to suffer her burns? It might teach her to be more respectful of her future husband’s wishes.Clenching his fists Thomas paced beside the open window, his mind tossing over various scenarios of what he should do. The anger in him tried to drown out the worry, assuring his conscience whatever happened to Dawn would not be his fault; he had tried to protect her. But it was his love for her which eventually made him leave the house and go out in to the dying night.As it was not yet morning, Fandova was eerily quiet as a majority of residents enjoyed their last few precious hours of sleep before their busy days began in earnest. Even the horses were still.He didn’t dare call out for Dawn and disturb this peace, so instead he began a methodical search of the town, although he had no idea where she could have gone. In the hours which had passed she could have left the village and be half way to another town by now. He just had to hope that this wasn’t the case, and so he scoured all the places he knew Dawn to love; the vast open fields, the well by which they had first met, the modest stables where the horses slept. But, he found no sign of anyone. The village remained deathly quiet.Even though his search was proving fruitless, Thomas continued wandering around the village in the vain hope that Dawn would suddenly appear. Yet these notions were dashed when the sun began to creep over the horizon, bathing Fandova in its warm glow and rousing the villagers from their slumber. Almost as soon as the glowing ball of fire starting its ascent in to the sky, people were up and bustling around, carrying buckets to the well, heading out in to the fields to plant crops.As the sun rose his heart sank. He had not managed to find Dawn. Wherever she was, he hoped she was being wise enough to seek shelter from the sun. His head heavy with resignation, he returned back to the Summers’ household, knowing not where else to go. He was weary from spending the night awake and vowed to resume his search the following evening.On pushing open the bedroom door, Thomas immediately realised that something was different. The window and the shutters were now tightly closed, plunging the room into an unnatural darkness. More than the lack of light it was the pungent smell which met him which made Thomas recoil back, placing one hand over his mouth and nose in an attempt not to wretch. The smell was of raw meat and something else which he couldn’t identify.“Dawn!”“I’m here,” came a small, frightened voice from the back of the room.Emboldened by her presence, Thomas ventured deeper in to the room. As he drew closer the smell intensified, but he could make out Dawn’s silhouette. She was knelt on the floor in the far corner, gazing down at something on the floor. Thomas stepped closer and looked to the floor and stopped as his heart turned to ice in his chest.

About the Author

Carys Jones loves nothing more than to write and create stories which ignite the reader's imagination. Based in Shropshire, England, Carys lives with her husband, two guinea pigs and her adored canine companion Rollo.

When she's not writing, Carys likes to indulge her inner geek by watching science-fiction films or playing video games.

She lists John Green, Jodi Picoult and Virginia Andrews as her favorite authors and draws inspiration for her own work from anything and everything.

To Carys, there is no greater feeling then when you lose yourself in a great story and it is that feeling of ultimate escapism which she tries to bring to her books.

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